India, March 3 -- The Iranian women's football team refused to sing their national anthem ahead of their Asian Cup opening match in Australia on Monday. The fixture marked the team's first appearance since tensions escalated between Iran and the US. A viral video clip on social media shows every member of the team standing silently, looking straight ahead, during the anthem before the kickoff of the Group A match between Iran and South Korea, which the latter won 3-0 at the Gold Coast Stadium in Queensland.

After the game came to an end, Iran's head coach Marziyeh Jafari and her players refused to comment on either the war or the death of their long-serving leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Speaking of the Iranian team, the contingent lan...